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Saturday, August 13, 2005

Batman Begins : Sin City

Ok, no the caped crusader didn't really begin there. But it was a good title for the post; and Frank Miller is involved in some way in the creation of both. So it's appropriate I saw them within a few days of each other. The mainly black-and-white, and heavily film-noir Sin City is based on Frank's (not so comic) comics of a city so twisted, corrupted and lawless that you can get away with anything given the right friends or deals. Now we come onto Batman, who in this movie has to protect a corrupt, twisted.. Gotham from destruction. Coincidental?

It's not Frank's first time with Mr. Wayne as I mentioned earlier - he did a superb job redefining the Batman character in perhaps his most acclaimed work as a dark vigilante-style hero. This was animated, dark, film-noir-like stuff (although a lot more cheerful than Sin City) and brilliantly done. The drawings were spot on, the stories were good if I remember correctly, and I heartily recommend you check it out if you've not come across them before and it's your thing (if you can find it anywhere). One of my favourite cartoons of that style. Although calling it a cartoon doesn't do it justice.

Batman is one of those films you don't want to end when it's building up the tension and action, and the flashbacks to his youth are linked in very well to explain Batman's back-story. Ok, I knew the basics and some of you may have known more detail; but I certainly got a good insight and a real believable link between Bruce as a child and the dual personality of the business-man and the hero now.

They're both very well made, dark, gritty, and entertaining films. I think I liked Batman more; Morgan Freeman and Michael Caine are great in their supporting roles (Michael Caine really makes a great butler to Christian Bale's tormented child and later, man-in-kevlar-black avenger).

Oh, and Katie Holmes is gorgeous (as usual); but it says enough about the movie that she wasn't one of the main reasons I went to see it.